Wednesday's Random Slang-o-rama: Pleased as Punch

As sometimes happens, I used a phrase just the other day in conversation, and then began to wonder how it came about and how long it's been around.

Well, turns out, if you are "pleased as punch"...

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... you'd better capitalize the "P." 

Here's why (from The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer ... Link supplied by me):

This term alludes to the character Punch in Punch and Judy shows, who is always very happy when his evil deeds succeed. [mid-1800s]

By Internet Archive Book Images [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons